AP Psych Review - Unit 5: Cognitive Psychology

Study of internal mental processes like thinking, knowing, learning

Active control and awareness of one's thinking process

Best example or mental image of a concept

Process of generating ideas by exploring various solutions

Mental process to discover, analyze, and solve problems

Step-by-step procedures for solving a problem

Educated guess based on prior experiences to narrow solutions; rule of thumb

Comparing a situation to a mental prototype

Basing decisions on readily available examples

Sudden realization of a problem solution; Aha! Moment

Studied chimps attempting to reach bananas

Viewing problems in a customary manner

Seeking information that supports preconceptions

Clutching to beliefs despite contradictory evidence

Overestimating one's knowledge, skill, or judgment

Tendency to view events as more predictable in hindsight; "I knew it all along"

Presenting an issue in a way that influences decisions

Persisted learning stored and retrieved over time

Compares memory to a computer in encoding, storage, retrieval

Process of inputting information into memory

Effortless processing of information like space, time, frequency

Encoding requiring attention and conscious effort

Creating a permanent record of encoded information

Recalling stored information when needed

Accessing information without cues

Identifying information after experiencing it

Reconstructing memory

Memory retention based on depth of processing

Basic encoding based on appearance

Attaching meaning to information for better retention

Memory systems categorized by time frames

Brief holding of external sensory events

Visual sensory memory

Auditory sensory memory

Tactile sensory memory

Immediate awareness of information

Retention of memories beyond seconds

Number of items recallable from short-term memory

Grouping information into larger units for memory

Whorf's hypothesis that language determines the way we think

The smallest units of sound

The units of meaning, i.e. words and meaningful parts of words (suffixes and prefixes)

Information that you have to consciously work to remember

Long-term memory that involves the recollection of specific events, situations, and experiences

These are memories of facts, concepts, names, and other general knowledge

Information that you remember unconsciously and effortlessly

How to perform a specific task, you don't have to consciously recall how to perform these tasks

A person has visual images clear enough to be retained for seconds and realistic in their vividness

Strengthening of a synaptic connection that happens when the synapse of one neuron repeatedly fires and excites another neuron

First to conduct experimental studies on memories by using himself as a subject

The exponential loss of information shortly after learning it

Occurs when a person experiences the full or partial loss of memory, injury, or trauma can create problems with various brain functions

Cannot remember things that happened before the event that caused their amnesia

Condition in which a person is unable to create new memories after an amnesia-inducing event

When we try to retrieve a long list of words we usually recall the last words and first words best, forgetting the words in the middle

System in your brain that allows you to temporarily retain and manipulate the stored information involved in a complex process

Straight repeating of information in order to memorize it to prolong its presence in STM, can increase the length of time information can be stored to about thirty seconds

Refer to emotionally intense events that become "burned in" asa vivid-seeming memory

Refers to the tendency to selectively recall details that are consistent with one's current mood

Occurs when past information interferes with learning new information

Occurs when new stimuli/learning interferes with the storage and retrieval of previously formed memories

Incorporating misleading information into one's memory of an event

Refers to the ability to reason and think flexibly, tend to diminish with adult aging

Refers to the accumulation of knowledge, facts, and skills that are acquired throughout life, tend to increase with age

IQ scores have been rising worldwide